Case Studies

Daniel Rovardi

I volunteer with Teesside Samaritans, Teesside Hospice, University Pass Leaders and also as a Course representative.

Each of these opportunities allows me to further develop my own skillset while helping other people. For example, the PASS Leaders opportunity involved some great training, as it is quite an independent role. We deliver sessions to students on our course who are studying a year or two below. It was quite nerve-racking at the start to be in front of a class of students and helping them facilitate their own learning.

As time went on it became really easy to talk to them and help them and I believe this scheme is an excellent confidence booster. Being able to talk to people, maintain eye contact, organize your time and work to be able to create sessions are transferable skills that I will use anywhere I go to work.

A typical day would include arriving at the classroom 10-15 minutes earlier to set-up and speak to the other leaders. Then it would be introducing the class to what we were going to study during that session. Then we would proceed, getting students to answer questions or interact with their peers. We would finish by getting the students to tell each other, and us, what they have learned and what they still want to learn. Using this we would prepare the next session.

I've learnt a great deal from volunteering. The main thing is that until you dedicate yourself to a lot of different activities or projects you really cannot comprehend how much time you actually have. I volunteered at various agencies while writing assignments and working part-time. Although, I did realise it is crucial not to spread yourself too thinly! In my third-year I reduced my amount of volunteering hours .

There are so many things I've enjoyed through volunteering. I've met people from different backgrounds, various ages and those who held different opinions to mine. It's an eye-opening experience and one that is guaranteed to take you out of your comfort zone.